Nonconformist observations and discussions about the music and vibes that connect our lives.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Pssst: I hear Ghosts

I went to bed listening to Sun Kil Moon and when I got up this morning, still lost in a bizarre dream, it was Muhammad Ali's birthday. Seems like the perfect time to have a conversation about Mark Kozelek.

You may be familiar with the San Francisco songwriter from his work with the Red House Painters. Or maybe, like me, you didn't know of him until you stumbled upon his reincarnation with Sun Kil Moon and the classic 2003 release Ghosts of the Great Highway. Or perhaps you're receiving your first nudge today. Yes, it's PSSST (Personal Six String Sanctuary Tout) No. 16.

After referencing Cassius Clay at the top, the song "Glenn Tipton" has nothing to do with Muhammad Ali. Nothing, and perhaps everything. Koselek has an obsession for boxing, or at the very least he is a keen ringside observer. Another song from the album, "Duk Koo Kim," is a haunting epic about the South Korean who died following a bout with Ray Mancini.

"Ghosts of the Great Highway" is far superior to just about anything that has been hyped through the myopic music mill in the past seven years, and will set you on a journey to discover Koselek's other work. It is a stunning collection of expertly crafted songs and spectacular guitar work, including some intricate alternate tunings I still haven't figured out. Although a few songs may stand out -- "Carry Me Ohio" is flat-out amazing -- it is a start-to-finish album, and there's no hurry to hit the finish line.

Cassius Clay was hated More than Sonny ListonSome like K.K. Downing More than Glenn TiptonSome like Jim NaborsSome Bobby VintonI like 'em all

I put my feet up On the coffee tableI stay up late watching cableI like old movies with Clark GableJust like my dad does

Just like my dad did When he was homeStaying up late, Staying up aloneJust like my dad did When he was thinkingOh, how fast the years fly

I know an old woman Ran a donut shopShe worked late serving copsThen one morning Babe, her heart stoppedPlace ain't the same no more

Place ain't the same no moreNot without my friend, EleanorPlace ain't the same no moreMan, how things change

I buried my first victim When i was nineteenWent through her bedroomAnd the pockets of her jeansAnd found her letters That said so many thingsThat really hurt me bad

I never breathed Her name againBut I like to dream About what could have beenI never heard her calls again

But I like to dream

If you like to dream put this album in the player and close your eyes. It will take you places.

Wolfgang's Vault

Strumbum

is among the growing legion of displaced newspaper journalists who could wile away the hours in their ivory towers until they're covered up with flowers in the back of a black limousine. (Thank you, Joe South.) Or he could blog. And so he does -- there are more than 800 entries at Six String Sanctuary since 2009, so sift through them when you get a chance and weigh in with your comments and feedback.

Recent spins

Yeah, he's an actor and you know how that usually goes. But watching Hugh Laurie occasionally tickle the ivories on House, we thought: This guy's pretty good. And so is his new album Let Them Talk, which has spent a month among the top sellers on Amazon.com. Honest, if you like New Orleans jazz you'll dig it.... We put in John Hiatt's Dirty Jeans and Mudslide Hymns (above) and we keep going back to the first song, "Damn This Town," because, damn, it's that good. The others on Hiatt's 20th solo release aren't too shabby either. ... Dave Alvin's new album Eleven Eleven is fine, fine, fine stuff. Now we're of a mind to track him down somewhere on his current tour with the Guilty Men. ... Great anticipation turns to unbridled glee as we listen to Rave On , the new Buddy Holly tribute compiliation featuring a diverse group of artists. Rave on, we will. ... Paul Simon's new album So Beautiful or So What comes highly recommended and now that we've been listening to it we understand why. ... We finally have our ears on Pat McLaughlin's Live in '09 which catches the Nashville funkmeister at his steamy best. Guitarist Kenny Greenberg, bass thumper Michael Rhodes and drummer Greg Morrow truly make this the most dangerous -- and bald -- live band on the planet. ... We've been listening to Go-Go Boots, the newest release from the Drive-By Truckers, and all we can say is it's one helluva crime scene. ... We weren't sure we needed another R.E.M. record until we started listening to Collapse Into Now. We're digging it... We didn't discover Mary Gauthier (above) until her amazing album Mercy Now in 2005. She has come a long way since then, even farther since her first release Dixie Kitchen which we finally tracked down. That was some twang she had back then ... We are sipping our Scotch on the rocks tonight with a splash of Gregg Allman. There have been times we wondered if all that talent was being wasted, but his new album Low Country Blues is a revival meeting for renewed faith.... If you enjoyed the 2009 movie Pirate Radio you'll almost certainly enjoy the soundtrack. Arg, mateys, it's rogue rock 'n' roll!!! ... We read so many favorable reviews for Robert Plant's Band of Joy that we had to give it a try. But after a few listens we're not convinced. ...We just began listening to Breathe Owl Breathe's album Magic Central and the indy folk trio's sound is truly enchanting. Must be the spirit that comes from living in a log cabin deep in Michigan...We never saw Willy Deville live so we figured the Willy Deville Acoustic Trio in Berlin might ease the pain. And it does...Justin Townes Earle's Harlem River Blues is one of the best albums of the year. We've had it in the player for a few days now and it's headed for the big board. Huge regrets for missing him in NYC.... Of all the sets out there for Johnny Cash, none top The Legend, a sterling 4-disc set that is often playing when Jimmy is manning the tap at our favorite watering hole. Thanks, man ... The stars were out above Gavel Ridge last night and Seasick Steve's Man From Another Time was in the player. Be sure to hang in there for a very memorable hidden track.Mick Jagger turned 67 the other day so we're cranking the Rolling Stones' Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass) which has been giving us great "Satisfaction" for, like, 44 years now. ... We're not sure when we discovered there's no sweeter combination than jazz and a nice glass of red wine at sunset. If the disc happens to be Lee Konitz Live at the Village Vanguard you can actually get by with a wine cube. So here we are, draining a box of Cab/Shiraz and totally digging that alto sax -- not to mention some splendid piano work by Florian Weber. ... Who are these imposters calling themselves the Jayhawks on the 1986 Bunkhouse Records release? Our starting point for the band had always been Blue Earth, but the debut album has come into our hands, and we can tell they have a long way to go to ever get to Rainy Day Music. Practice, lads, practice... Tift Merritt dedicates See You on the Moon to, among others, Lucy "the greatest dog the world will ever know. How can Lewie and I not check that out? ... None other than John Fogerty sings "you can't go wrong playing that Creedence song" so we put on his 2007 album Revival. And you know something? He's absolutely right ... Gram Parsons Archives Vol. 1 captures our hero with the Flying Burrito Bros. at the Avalon Ballroom in 1969. It's not perfect, but it's perfectly sublime ... The Midwest roots duo The Pines have a beautiful thing going and their latest release Tremolo should garner some attention. We played it all weekend after seeing the lads from Iowa at Shank Hall in Milwaukee. ... Dialed up Blonde on Blonde on the IPod while strolling to my favorite watering hole and if this isn't Bob Dylan at his best...maybe it was the earbuds but his voice never sounded better. And the songwriting on that album, damn. We've known this for 30 years and still can't find the words. His best work. ... Lucinda Weekend is over but the music rocks on. "Oh, my little honey bee I'm so glad you stung me." Little Honey hurts so good ... The latest CD from Chuck Prophet Let Freedom Ring is a winner (and he's playing most of these new songs at his live shows). Be sure to check it out. ..I put Johnny Cash's American VI: Ain't No Grave in the player on the way to work and his turn on Kris Kristofferson's "For the Good Times" (made famous by Ray Price) will break your heart. ...Just put the Dave Rawlings Machine's "A Friend of a Friend" in the player and it's easy at first listen to know why it has been so well received. Great stuff from Gillian Welch's sidekick. ... We have nearly all of their discs, but digging them out isn't always easy. So the Jayhawks' Anthology "Music From from the North Country'' is perfect for a road trip. It's in the player now... Feeling very much like a Fredhead today, it was time to put on Fred J. Eaglesmith's Bootleg Volume 1 from 2002. Nothing better than a songwriting storyteller. Or is he a storytelling songwriter? Hope that Case tractor he bought is working out good for him. ... Speaking of Johnny Paycheck, look what popped out of a moving box this morning: Touch My Heart, A Tribute to Johnny Paycheck. Mavis Staples' cover track is true gem, but there's plenty more in in this 2004 release produced by Robbie Fulks. ... Red Beet Records has done it again, and East Nashville: More Music From the Other Side Vol. 3 might be the best one yet. It has one of my favorite songs (and videos) of the year in Eric Brace's "Tranquility Base", and sooooo much more. Back to you later on this one. ... I finally put Mark Knopfler's "Get Lucky" in the player where it will stay for a bit. What a master guitar player and storyteller. And every new album you learn a few more lessons. ... I don't own it yet, but I've been hearing steady cuts from Tom Petty's "The Live Anthology" which is available on CD and vinyl. You could always count on the Heartbreakers live (saw them here in fact at Summerfest during their "Full Moon Fever" tilt, and this ambitious set is overwhelming. ... Carey Ott's "Lucid Dream" was in the player for the drive back to Milwaukee. This one will get you down the road in good shape, ready to take on whatever's waiting at the other end. (Especially if it turns out to be a tall glass of beer.) ... Kris Kristofferson calls Paul Thorn "the best kept secret in the music business." I feel pretty good, then, having seen Thorn twice in concert. And I'm finally getting to his latest release "A Long Way From Tupelo.'' ... I had a dream that Graham Parker had a new album out, and that he bought a hamburger for me and sat down to discuss some issues regarding a concert that went awry in Miami. Not sure how to interpret that, other than to put on "Mona Lisa's Sister'' and listen again. Always good stuff. ... Spending the morning with the Oscar Peterson Trio's "Night Train.'' I love the piano, but there are times when you just want to zero in on the bass player, and there were few better than Ray Brown. ... I put the headphones on Sunday and blasted Lucinda Williams' "Live at the Fillmore.'' She can growl in my ears almost any time ... My friend and former colleague Charles Walston, who brought us Atlanta's twangingly terrific Vidalias, just shared a CD from his latest project fronting Bourbon Dynasty in D.C. And "Hard Music for Hard Times'' is very fine stuff, with lyrical story-telling we've missed and a soothing voice that somehow makes all the trouble easier to bear. You can get a taste yourself by visiting www.myspace.com/the.bourbon.dynasty. Tell him Jimbo sent you ... Couldn't locate "Take Five'' but anything by Dave Brubeck and Paul Desmond is appropriate this week. "Jazz at Oberlin'' -- recorded 50 years ago -- is a real gem. ... The Avett Brothers' "I and Love and You.'' Nothing like a little brotherly harmony to get the week rolling... ONE OF 2009's pleasant surprises is "Heaven & Earth'' by Blue Mother Tupelo. I hope there's room on Ricky and Micol Davis' bandwagon, because I am smitten by this stunning collection of songs filled with rich vocal harmonies and smart, world-wise lyrics.

Now playing

Nobody sings like Johnny Cash, and few can pull off something called The Sun Sessions. Dale Watson is one of those dudes. Like the first song says, we're "Down Down Down Down Down"...

Click on the image to order Pieta Brown's Mercury from Amazon.com.

The Pssst! List

Here's some music not to be missed. Click on the Personal Six String Sanctuary Touts below to read the blogs that introduce each CD:

Now them's blues

We spent an evening with Reverend Raven and the Chain Smoking Altar Boys, and the joint was indeed smoking. Click on the image above to go to the Reverend's website and sample his music.

Our dude in Abu Dhabi

Live from the Persian Gulf: My buddy Robert finally has his much-awaited blog up, and you need to check it out. Just click on the image and it'll take you to the Queen of Sheba and other delights from a fascinating place far, far away. I sometimes wonder if, like the alleged moon landing, Robert is actually doing all of this from a studio in Atlanta.

Making a Point

You know you're back in Wisconsin when you see beer pulls like this one featuring Point Beer from Stevens Point. Skol!